A funny yet tender picture book about a timid turtle, a world of worries, and the courage it takes to come out of your shell.

Turtle is perfectly happy to stay in his shell, where it’s safe. Turtle’s friends want him to come out and play in the forest . . . where something bad could happen! Tidal waves, swarms of bees, lightning strikes, getting spinach stuck in your teeth: the worrisome possibilities are endless. No, Turtle won’t be risking his life today, thank you very much.

But after he brushes them off one too many times, his friends finally get the hint and leave him be. It’s only then that Turtle begins to wonder: is complete safety worth being completely alone?

With simple, sharp illustrations, Mitch Miller’s nuanced, author-illustrator debut about anxiety is the perfect combination of laugh-out-loud drama and a whole lot of hope.